Teachers may get a four-day week... and a pay rise too

Teachers could be permitted to work four-day weeks giving schools more flexible working hours, according to government plans.

The Education Secretary, Lucy Powell, has received recommendations from an independent body advising ministers how to make the full-time teaching requirements of 195 days per year more lenient.

Under the new plans, teachers in council-run schools could be allowed to fulfil their contracted hours over four days, but schools must still remain open for the full week.

Flexible working hours are already a possibility at academies although government figures suggest they should still adhere to the 195 days per year framework which includes five days of staff training.

Ministers may also lift the ceiling on teachers’ salaries in order to attract and keep experienced staff working in the classroom.

Instead of the five-day week, head teachers could designate full-time teaching staff to work 1,265 hours over fewer days.

While teachers could be allowed a four-day week some teachers would be timetabled to work the fifth day of the week ensuring students receive a full education.

In an open letter from the Education Secretary to Mike Aldred, the chairman of the School Teachers’ Review Body, Ms Powell said there was uncertainty as to whether all schools could offer a reduced working week.

‘We understand there is ambiguity within the current 195-day framework about schools’ ability to offer flexibility in individual teacher working patterns,’ she wrote.

‘We are proposing a targeted amendment to clarify that teachers may be available to work their directed hours up to 195 days (or pro rata equivalent), with the intention to provide leaders with greater flexibility to choose to depart from the 195-day requirement to respond to evolving workforce needs.’

The plans would enable teachers to fulfil their duties over fewer days but would not cement a four-day working week for all teaching staff, nor reduce the days schools must remain open.

Ms Powell added that no teachers would be required to work any more than the 195 days a year expected of them and said the 1,265 hour limit required will not increase.

The cap would cover lesson time, meetings and other duties and does not include work teachers carry out in their own time including lesson preparation and marking.

Wider reforms around working hours were ruled out by the Education Secretary as part of the review.

It comes after several warnings that inflexible working hours were pushing experienced teachers out of work.

In last year's report, the independent body named four-day weeks and other amendments such as nine-day fortnights and remote work as some of the changes that could help recruitment and keep teachers in the classroom.

The review also warned that schools were not falling over themselves to accept flexible working hours despite the popularity in other industries. 

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